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How to play Dungeons and Dragons

Fans of the legendary role-playing game ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ meet every second Saturday at Tea Tree Gully Library to play out their characters until the final victor emerges.

The essence of Dungeons and Dragons (or D&D as it is commonly known) is a social gathering, where friends and acquaintances gather to experience a new story they create for themselves. There are quests for treasure, battles for territory, deadly meetings with enemies, romantic interludes and absolutely no dull moments.

We caught up with D&D leader Teresa McBride and asked her to give us more details about this intriguing game….

Can you tell us about ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ – what is it all about? How do you play & how do you win?

Dungeons & Dragons is a game about role playing. Each player has a character, which they create themselves.

Character customisation is one of the biggest things about the game. You can be a Pompadour Elf with a taste for Dwarven Ale, or a human whose entire life goal is to track down the murderer of his family.

You don’t need a story or description to build a character, just an idea on what you want to be.

One player, however, is the Dungeon Master or Game Master. The DM/GM is the one in charge of creating the story, world and encounters.

Having played D&D from both perspectives, each role is hugely different and satisfies different people.

D&D is best explained by the phrase: Are you a listener or a story teller?
There is no flat ‘you win’, it is more ‘Congratulations you have overcome this challenge, what would you like to do next?’.

When did you first become interested in D&D? What about the game appeals to you?

I first started playing D&D in 2012, but I became interested earlier through video games and hanging around in my local hobby store.

What I find appealing is the ability to create a main character for someone else’s story and then seeing how events play out.

How long does a game normally go for?

A game session can go for as long as the party wants to and is usually determined by when and where the group can next meet.

Personally I find one game for 4 hours a week provides enough substance to keep people attracted.

A game campaign can last indefinitely if wanted, but it usually ends after one of three things happen:

1. People start losing interest in their character

2. All the player characters die

3. The ‘final’ boss is defeated

Have you made lots of friends through playing D&D?

Personally I have developed strong friendships with friends that I play with and have discovered some new friendships through the game.

Can you tell us about one of the most interesting D&D games you played and what happened in that game?

The most interesting game was when a single player killed the final boss of the dungeon.

Just before the final boss room, the troll player decided to gather up all the explosives the party had on them at the time. Then he rode atop his giant boar mount, charged through the final boss door and threw himself, with all the explosives ignited, at the evil necromancer. The explosion was so massive that it destroyed the final boss instantly.

What would you say to someone interested in playing, but isn’t quite sure?

Take the plunge, get a small group of friends and host the game yourself. The materials are easily available online. If you are too hesitant, conventions like AVcon have been known to host D&D games, which would be a perfect place to start.

By the way…

During non-playing time, players can enjoy novels that depict D&D scenarios. These fantasy books are available from the Tea Tree Gully Library collection and all South Australian libraries.